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Jack Taggert (Earth-616)
| Citizenship = American | MaritalStatus = Single | Occupation = Mercenary | Education = Military training | Origin = | PlaceOfBirth = | Creators = David Michelinie; Bob Layton | First = Iron Man Vol 1 226 | First2 = (First full appearance) | HistoryText = Jack Taggert was the pilot of an experimental heavily-armed and -armored battle suit created with Stark technology in the Project: Firepower, a program created by Edwin Cord and sponsored by the government to create a new generation of armored soldiers and to control rogue super-humans. Jack Taggert, uses a simulator which allows him to practice fighting Iron Man in a virtual environment. He is being observed by Edwin Cord, Senator Boynton, and General Meade. He is also being coached by a Dr. Abrams, an apparent employee of the Senator, but Cord convinces him to stop. Meanwhile, Taggert handily finishes off Iron Man, but General Meade is critical: Taggert used a missile that would have destroyed half of downtown Detroit. He goes on to stress that he wants to avoid fatalities, and then reveals that, “The government financed you development of the Firepower weapons system ostensibly for use by our soldiers in the next war. But in reality, we wanted a ready defense against the country’s so-called “super heroes,” should they ever get out of line!” Firepower is undergoing a practical test in which he must defend himself against tanks and jet airplanes. He destroys them all easily, even faster than the 12 second computer estimate. The men who were watching him earlier are congratulatory, but Boynkin worries about Taggert’s zeal, and wonders if he’s the right man for the job. Cord reassures him. At Tony Stark’s Pacific Coast estate, he puts on his Iron Man suit and prepares for a confrontation, because he is afraid that “one armored bad-guy could still be on the loose. He heads back to earth, where Boynton and some men from the Defense Department convince him to help destroy Iron Man, inadvertently giving away an ambush that they have set for Iron Man using Firepower. Even though he knows that he is heading into a trap, Iron Man heads for the desert, where Firepower is. The next day, Tony approaches the ambush site in a Stark Enterprises helicopter. When it gets close, he exits in his Iron Man suit. After a lengthy fight with Firepower, Iron Man is defeated. He is almost killed, but Rhodey picks him up in the helicopter just in the nick of time. The helicopter is surrounded, and we next see the Iron Man suit flying away. It is hit by one of firepower’s missiles, and blown to bits. A lone Private, Alvin Barnes, watches as the pieces of his suit fall to the ground with Iron Man's blood smeared on the shattered helmet. A moment later, in a desert arroyo, two soldiers, Private Baskin and Corporal Winters, fire rockets at Firepower, in his armor. Edwin Cord observes. The structural integrity of Firepower’s armor is intact, and the fight with Iron Man didn't do it any damage. Senator Boynton and General Meade show up, wanting to take custody of the armor, but Cord refuses to give it to them. He says that should they try to take it, he will reveal to the tabloids how the armor was conceived as a riot control device, and has Taggart blow up the flatbed truck they were going to use to take away the armor. Over the next few days, Edwin Cord and Taggart seem determined to sabotage Stark Enterprises: they intimidate a manufacturing group into not accepting a Stark contract bid, blow up a shipment for Accutech Research and Development (a subsidiary of Stark Enterprises). A few days later, north of San Francisco, Iron Man shows up to stop Firepower from harassing a celebration of a new Stark Enterprises facility in Marin County. An almost defeated Iron Man returned to a Stark Enterprises helicopter near the scene and left his almost destroyed armor out there. Firepower destroyed it with a Terminax missile, apparently killing Iron Man. Then Firepower became Cord's henchmen and threatened Marsten Manufacturing into not accepting Stark's bid. After attacking Tony and his workers, Stark decided to take down Taggert with his own hands, and created new Iron Man armor. Firepower tried to kill Iron Man by setting a Terminax missile that was stuck in his suit to detonate in thirty seconds, so Iron Man would try to prevent it and die. Tony used an Electromagnetic Pulse to slow the countdown, and managed to take Taggert out of the armor before it exploded. Years later, Jack Taggert in new Firepower armor was used by Mandarin in an army of Iron Man villains to take down the armored Avenger. | Powers = None relies on Firepower armor | Reference = Jack Taggert (Earth-616) ||||||| | Abilities = Skilled Aviator: He is a skill pilot and is capable of maneuvering the Firepower armor. Skilled Combatant: Jack Taggert military training made him a very skilled hand to hand combat. Skilled Marksman: Aside from his armor's weaponry, he is a very good marksman. Skilled Tactician He can make strategies in order to win. | Strength = Without his armor Jack Taggert possesses the strength a a normal man who engages in moderate regular exercise. | Equipment = Firepower Armor | Weapons = Various type of heavy weapons inside the armor | Notes = | Trivia = | Links = }} Category:Armor Users